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justforbooks · 10 months

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Alan Arkin, who has died aged 89, was a star at the beginning of his career and a beloved character actor until the end. Though best known for comedies, most notably Catch-22 (1970) and Little Miss Sunshine (2006), lightness was not necessarily his forte; even at his funniest, he exuded gravitas. “I’ve studied acting seriously,” he said in 1982. “I’m not the clown who wants to be Hamlet or anything like that. I just think that regarding oneself as comic means that one’s primary obligation is to get laughs.”

He could be a prickly figure. “Alan does not meet you halfway as an actor,” said the writer-director Marshall Brickman, who cast him as a brainwashed scientist in the science-fiction comedy Simon (1980). “He’s a very serious actor. I think he’s brilliant. But he’s not interested in winning you over via personality. The way he photographs has a kind of austerity that’s a little hard for an audience to take. You either like Alan or you don’t.” The Oscar Arkin won for playing a heroin-snorting grandfather in Little Miss Sunshine ratified his status as a US national treasure.

Arkin was born and raised in Brooklyn, New York, the son of Beatrice (nee Wortis) and David Arkin, both schoolteachers. As a child, he attended acting classes. The family moved to Los Angeles when Alan was 11, but trouble befell the family when David was accused of communist affiliations (disproved posthumously) during the McCarthy era.

Alan studied acting at Los Angeles State College of Applied Arts and Sciences (now California State University, Los Angeles) before transferring to Bennington College, Vermont. In 1955, he married Jeremy Yaffe, and became active in the folk music scene. Along with fellow members of his group, the Tarriers, he was credited as co-writer of The Banana Boat Song (Day-O), an adaptation of a Jamaican folk standard. (A different version was a hit for Harry Belafonte.)

After an inauspicious film debut with the Tarriers in Calypso Heat Wave (1957), he threw in his lot with acting. He made his off-Broadway debut in the late 1950s and joined the Chicago improvisational group the Compass Players in 1959. This led to a stint with the Chicago improv troupe Second City and his Broadway debut, in 1961, in the company’s show From the Second City, which he co-wrote.

Arkin did not forgo folk music entirely: he formed the children’s group the Babysitters, which also featured Yaffe until their divorce. The band was later joined by his second wife, the actor and writer Barbara Dana, whom he married in 1964.

He left Second City after landing the lead on Broadway in a 1963 production, Enter Laughing, for which he won a Tony award. In the same year, he wrote, scored and starred in the Oscar-nominated short film That’s Me. Norman Jewison gave him his first major film role in The Russians Are Coming, The Russians Are Coming (1966), a comic take on cold war paranoia. Arkin received an Oscar nomination for his performance as a lieutenant on a Soviet submarine that runs aground in New England.

His range was indisputable. Comparisons to Peter Sellers abounded even before Arkin took the title role in the misguided, off-piste comedy Inspector Clouseau (1968). He accepted a rare villainous part in Wait Until Dark (1967), terrorising a blind Audrey Hepburn. In the same year, he played one of Shirley MacLaine’s lovers in Vittorio de Sica’s portmanteau film Woman Times Seven. He won a second Oscar nomination for playing a deaf man in The Heart Is a Lonely Hunter (1968), adapted from the novel by Carson McCullers, and starred as a Puerto Rican widower raising his children in Popi (1969).

His landmark role came when he was cast as the anxious bombardier Yossarian in Mike Nichols’s film of Joseph Heller’s Catch-22. The New York Times critic Vincent Canby summed up Arkin’s appeal: “[He] is not a comedian; he is a deadly serious actor, but because he projects intelligence with such monomaniacal intensity, he is both funny and heroic at the same time.” The eight-month shoot was an arduous experience for the actor. “If they had shot footage of the making of the film,” he said, “it would’ve been a hell of a lot closer to the book than the movie was.”

Arkin had already directed several shorts when he embarked on his full-length directing debut, an adaptation of Jules Feiffer’s blackly comic play Little Murders (1971), set in a fractured and hostile New York City. The film’s critical reputation has grown steadily along with that of Arkin’s follow-up, Fire Sale (1977). Both pictures exhibit an acidic, rueful comic tone consistent with the mood of 1970s independent cinema.

In the same decade, Arkin played a long-distance truck driver in Deadhead Miles (1972), scripted by Terrence Malick; unsure how to market this eccentric road movie, Paramount shelved it, though it has surfaced occasionally on television. He teamed up with James Caan in the action comedy Freebie and the Bean (1974), with Peter Falk in The In-Laws (1979) and with Jeff Bridges in the 1930s-set Hearts of the West (1975). In The Seven-Per-Cent Solution (1977), he played Sigmund Freud, who welcomes Sherlock Holmes (Nicol Williamson) as a patient. He was a washed-up superhero in the Australian musical comedy The Return of Captain Invincible (1983) and a concentration camp prisoner in Escape from Sobibor (1987).

During the 1990s, Arkin’s movie career began its second flourishing. He specialised in sympathetic father figures in Coupe de Ville and Edward Scissorhands (both 1990) and Slums of Beverly Hills (1998), and played a desperate salesman in Glengarry Glen Ross (1992), the film of David Mamet’s play. He was also memorable as an assassin’s psychiatrist in Grosse Pointe Blank (1997). An acclaimed performance as a troubled insurance manager in Thirteen Conversations About One Thing (2001) attracted further awards.

The independent smash Little Miss Sunshine exploited Arkin’s contradictory qualities of coarseness and warmth. After that, most of his films felt minor: in 2008 he delivered another beneficent father routine in Sunshine Cleaning and a helping of spy antics in Get Smart, and was a twinkly editor in the family hit Marley & Me. More challenging was Rebecca Miller’s drama The Private Lives of Pippa Lee (2009), in which Arkin played a man married to a woman 30 years his junior. His fond portrayal of a grizzled movie producer in Argo (2012), Ben Affleck’s thriller set during the Iran hostage crisis, was hugely admired and was nominated for a best supporting actor Oscar.

He starred with Al Pacino and Christopher Walken as ageing crooks reuniting for one last job in Stand Up Guys (2012), and with Michael Caine and Morgan Freeman as retirees who plot to rob a bank after losing their pensions in Going in Style (2017). He was also in Tim Burton’s live-action remake of Dumbo (2019) and played a Hollywood agent in the Netflix series The Kominsky Method (2019) with Michael Douglas.

In 2020, he published Out of My Mind, which detailed his 20-year friendship with his spiritual mentor John Battista, though Battista’s full name is not mentioned in the book, nor his fall from grace (Battista was charged with the sexual abuse of several women and one girl) and suicide. The scandal caused a kind of paralysis in Arkin for six months, he told the Guardian in 2020. “But I doggedly went on and I’m glad that I did.”

He is survived by his third wife, Suzanne Newlander, whom he married in 1996, two sons, Adam and Matthew, from his first marriage, and a son, Anthony, from his second marriage.

🔔 Alan Wolf Arkin, actor and director, born 26 March 1934; died 29 June 2023

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denimbex1986 · 10 months

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'Oppenheimer, starring Cillian Murphy, as J. Robert Oppenheimer, has been getting a lot of buzz this summer for its subject (The Manhattan Project) and its close premiere date with The Barbie movie. Long before Oppenheimer, there have been many movies created about The Manhattan Project, J. Robert Oppenheimer, or the terrors of the atomic bomb.

We searched Reddit to discover what movies and documentaries Redditors recommend to watch before Oppenheimer. From Fat Man and Little Boy to Trinity and Beyond - The Atomic Bomb Movie, there are many different options for documentary lovers, classic film enthusiasts, and even sci-fi fans.

10 'Fat Man and Little Boy' (1989)

Fat Man and Little Boy, directed by Roland Joffé, is a dramatic interpretation of the events and people surrounding The Manhattan Project. General Groves enlists the help of a team of scientists, including Oppenheimer, to develop atomic bombs. Politics and technical issues delay and cause the team to clash with each other as they get closer to creating Fat Man, a heavy plutonium bomb, and Little Boy, a smaller plutonium bomb. The movie brings together an all-star cast, including Paul Newman (General Leslie R. Groves), Dwight Schultz (J. Robert Oppenheimer), John Cusack (Michael Merriman), Laura Dern (Kathleen Robinson), and Bonnie Bedelia (Kitty Oppenheimer).

Critics weren't too excited about Fat Man and Little Boy when it came out, but Reddit doesn't seem to mind the dramatization of The Manhattan Project. Reddit user Beatle7 commented that "Fat Man and Little Boy does cover it [The Manhattan Project], and it's OK..." Another user Spies87 also mentions Fat Man and Little Boy as a recommendation. This movie will provide Oppenheimer moviegoers with a base for what direction a fictionalized movie can take, but it won't provide a good basis for facts about The Manhattan Project.

9 'Infinity' (1996)

Infinity is kind of indirectly related to The Manhattan Project. Matthew Broderick stars as Richard Feynman, a physician known for his work on The Manhattan Project. Infinity doesn't focus too much on the science or what goes on with atomic bombs. Instead, the film's plot dives into the romantic chemistry between Richard and Arline, his love interest who is played by Patricia Arquette.

While Oppenheimer isn't a romance, movie fans should consider giving Infinity a watch before they head to the theater to see Christopher Nolan's thriller unfold. Richard Feynman is depicted by Jack Quaid in Oppenheimer. Infinity gives a peak into Richard Feynman's life outside the lab and how he met his future wife, Arline. "There's a great movie of Matthew Broderick's (produced and acted in) called Infinity in which he's playing the physicist Richard Feynman, who was instrumental in the Manhattan Project. He was newly married when he worked there, and it's a big part of the movie," wrote Reddit user Beatle7.

8 'The Manhattan Project' (1986)

Despite its name, The Manhattan Project, directed by Marshall Brickman, isn't actually about the atomic bomb experiment in New Mexico. However, this film does involve an atomic bomb. Paul, a smart young teenager played by Christopher Collet, decides to create an atomic bomb for his school science project after he is inspired by a visit to scientist John Mathewson's lab. Paul must steal radioactive materials to build his project and to help his aspiring journalist girlfriend, Jenny, who wants to expose the company that John works for.

The Manhattan Project and Oppenheimer are very different movies, but they both are thrillers. A viewing of The Manhattan Project will help Oppenheimer moviegoers in the right state of mind to watch the fast-paced action and intrigue. One of the main reasons to watch The Manhattan Project is Lithgow's portrayal of scientist John Mathewson. Reddit user castlebravomedia commented that the film is alright, but John Lithgow is always fun to watch.

7 'The Beginning of The End' (1957)

The Beginning of The End, directed by Bert I. Gordon, is another sci-fi movie that doesn't involve anything about The Manhattan Project, but it deals atomic horror. The film stars Peggy Castle as Audrey Ames, a journalist who must work with Dr. Ed Wainwright, a scientist, to stop giant grasshoppers (whose size happened due to consuming radioactive tomatoes) from destroying Chicago.

Redditor mike_sean recommended watching The Beginning of The End to a Reddit user who asked for suggestions on movies that depict The Manhattan Project. Giant monster movies, also known as kaiju films, are a cultural aftereffect of people's fear of nuclear war and atomic bombs. Like other giant monster movies, The Beginning of The End depicts this fear in the metaphor of giant grasshoppers. The film was made ten years after The Manhattan Project ended, and shows how it had lasting impact on the American subconscious.

6 'Day One' (1989)

Day One, directed by Joseph Sargent, is an Emmy-award winning TV movie about the creation of the atomic bomb. This docudrama portrays the dynamics (good and bad) between General Groves (Brian Dennehy) and The Manhattan Project team, including J. Robert Oppenheimer (David Strathairn) and Leo Szilard (Michael Tucker).

Day One fans say that this is a solid adaptation of the novel, One Day by Peter Wyden. Many fans also commend David Strathairn's performance as Oppenheimer and Brian Dennehy's portrayal of General Groves. Reddit user mike_sean suggested this movie to their fellow Redditor who was looking for recommendations for movies related to The Manhattan Project.

5 'Countdown to Zero' (2010)

Countdown to Zero, is a documentary directed by Lucy Walker, about the atomic bomb and nuclear arms race. It's an intense analysis at how the possibility of nuclear weapons being unleashed has risen due to factors such as terrorism and lack of legislation.

This documentary doesn't dive into The Manhattan Project. However, there are moments of in the film which show Oppenheimer. Reddit user Summerbrau recommended Countdown to Zero to a Redditor who was looking for documentaries about The Manhattan Project. They commented: "Not specifically the Manhattan Project but has a lot of Oppenheimer footage from the day. Countdown to Zero by Lucy Walker."

4 'The Day After Trinity' (1981)

The Day After Trinity is a documentary directed by Jon H. Else. The documentary's name refers to a famous quote said by Oppenheimer. The Day After Trinity examines the life of J. Robert Oppenheimer and his work associated with The Manhattan Project. While the film does include information about the early days of The Manhattan Project, it also extensively covers the aftermath of the Trinity event.

What is the most interesting thing about The Day After Trinity is that it just doesn't talk about J. Robert Oppenheimer. The film features several interviews with people who worked on The Manhattan Project. As a bonus, the documentary also has declassified government footage. One Reddit user wrote: "The Day after Trinity" - this one is great. It has a lot of interviews."

3 'The Atomic Cafe' (1982)

The Atomic Cafe, directed by Jayne Loader, Kevin Rafferty, and Pierce Rafferty, is a documentary-like film of archival footage from the 1930s and 1940s. The editing together of U.S. propaganda about atomic bombs creates an oftentimes funny, but mostly terrifying depiction of atomic bombs.

From the obscure music to its tongue-in-cheek humor, critics and fans absolutely love this documentary. The Atomic Cafe sends its viewers a message about atomic bombs with only footage and no narration. This makes it a prime candidate for being a classic documentary. Reddit user mi-16evil calls The Atomic Cafe a "classic about nuclear paranoia."

2 'The Trials of J. Robert Oppenheimer' (2008)

The Trials of J. Robert Oppenheimer, directed by David Grubin and narrated by Campbell Scott, is a made of TV documentary which follows the life of Oppenheimer from his childhood to his time as a scientist on The Manhattan Project. This film is part of The American Experience series from PBS and WGBH Boston.

Reddit user TepidShark recommended The Trails of J. Robert Oppenheimer to a Redditor who wanted to know any movies or TV shows they should look into before they see Oppenheimer. This documentary takes a biographical look into Oppenheimer's life with archival footage, but it also includes reenactments of the Oppenheimer security hearing. In their comment, Redditor TepidShark mentions that the documentary "features recreations of a trial Oppenheimer was involved in, that feature David Strathairn as Oppenheimer."

1 'Trinity and Beyond: The Atomic Bomb Movie' (1995)

Trinity and Beyond - The Atomic Bomb Movie, directed by Peter Kuran, is a documentary about the history of nuclear weapons. The documentary, narrated by William Shatner, uses restored archival footage to explore how nuclear technology was developed. The film includes clips of weapons being tested, including the Trinity site test to the test of the Nike Hercules defense missile.

Fans of Trinity and Beyond praise it for being informative and haunting. The film is also popular for its score by the Moscow Symphony Orchestra. Redditor user mi-16evil suggests that people interested in seeing Oppenheimer should watch this movie because it is a "pretty good straight up documentary about the nuclear arms race."'

#Oppenheimer #Trinity and Beyond: The Atomic Bomb Movie #The Trials of J. Robert Oppenheimer #The Atomic Cafe #The Day After Trinity #Countdown to Zero #Infinity #Fat Man and Little Boy #The Manhattan Project #Jack Quaid #Richard Feynman #The Beginning of The End #Day One #Matthew Broderick #Cillian Murphy #Paul Newman #John Cusack #Laura Dern #William Shatner

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